Trial pushed back for man charged with kidnap, rape of teen

LACONIA, N.H. (AP) — The trial for a man accused of kidnapping a 14-year-old girl and raping and imprisoning her over the course of nine months has been pushed back until the summer.

The New Hampshire Judicial Branch announced last week that Nathaniel Kibby's trial is now scheduled to start June 20 with jury selection. It had been scheduled for March.

Prosecutors say Kibby, 35, of Gorham, kidnapped the girl on her way home from school in Conway in October 2013, then imprisoned her in his home and a storage unit until July 2014, when she returned home. He faces more than 200 charges in Carroll and Coos counties.

Kibby is accused of using death threats, a stun gun, zip ties and a shock collar to control the teen. Prosecutors said he also ordered his captive to help him destroy evidence. The Carroll County indictments said she spotted his full name inside a cookbook in his home and revealed that information to investigators days after she returned.

Kibby told the girl he would only release her if she lied to police about what had happened and what he looked like, the indictments say.

His trial will be in Belknap County. The charges carry penalties that could effectively send Kibby to prison for life if he is convicted.

In July, Kibby was indicted on new charges that he threatened the lead prosecutor in the case. According to that indictment, a recorded phone call he made from the Carroll County House of Corrections last December captured Kibby making vulgar threats to harm Associate Attorney General Jane Young. He pleaded not guilty to a felony charge of improper influence and misdemeanor charges of criminal threatening and obstructing government administration.